God Spot

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God Spot
This Christian Resource Blog has been created by a group of friends from around the world. Our purpose is to provide links to useful resources, some commentary on topical or doctrinal issues, a place where anyone can come with questions and a means whereby we can share our faith. And above all, to grow and encourage each other. As Christians, we believe we bear God's image in this world, and seek to glorify God's name in this endeavour. Any Christian who wants to join with us is very welcome!

Monday, July 12, 2004

Glory to God

Stan, great article and post on Beethoven. We can look forward to hearing more of him, in heaven, I feel sure! (BTW, we must teach you to insert url's into the text someday - I inserted it above so any readers can click and read!)

Carol, really interested in your comment about the purpose of God being that our talents bring glory to Him, because I've been thinking similarly. The article I posted (it's in the list at left too) about the vindication of Christ, is actually titled "Did Christ Die for Us or for God?" and talks about the great gulf between the secular and spiritual mindsets. It defines the secular mindset thus:

It's a mindset that begins with man as the basic given reality in the universe. All of its thinking starts with the assumption that man has basic rights and basic needs and basic expectations. Then the secular mind moves out from this center and interprets the world, with man and his rights and needs as the measure of all things.

What the secular mindset sees as problems are seen as problems because of how things fit or don't fit with the center – man and his rights and needs and expectations. And what this mindset sees as successes are seen as successes because they fit with man and his rights and needs and expectations.

This is the mindset we were born with and that our secular society reinforces virtually every hour of the day in our lives. The Apostle Paul calls this mindset "the mind that is set on the flesh" (Romans. 8:6-7), and says that it is the way the "natural person" thinks (1 Corinthians 2:14, literal translation). It is so much a part of us that we hardly even know it's there. We just take it for granted – until it collides with another mindset, namely the one in the Bible.

Here is the alternative:

The Biblical mindset is not simply one that includes God somewhere in the universe and says that the Bible is true. The Biblical mindset begins with a radically different starting point, namely, God. God is the basic given reality in the universe. He was there before we were in existence – or before anything was in existence. He is simply the most absolute reality.

And so the Biblical mindset starts with the assumption that God is the center of reality. All thinking starts with the assumption that God has basic rights as the Creator of all things. He has goals that fit with his nature and perfect character. Then the Biblical mindset moves out from this center and interprets the world, with God and his rights and goals as the measure of all things.

What the Biblical mindset sees as basic problems in the universe are usually not the same problems that the secular mindset sees. The reason for this is that what makes a problem is not, first, that something doesn't fit the rights and needs of man, but that it doesn't fit the rights and goals of God. If you start with man and his rights and wants, rather than starting with the Creator and his rights and goals, the problems you see in the universe will be very different.

The author, John Piper, talks about the ascendancy of God's glory:

David (when he sinned) demeaned God's glory. He belittled God's worth. He dishonored God's name. That is the meaning of sin – failing to love God's glory above everything else." "All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God."

Seems to my recent thinking, that having God as centre of our thinking and living will engender a desire to glorify Him in everything - perhaps the ultimate purpose of mankind (God's creation)!

# posted by geoff @ 11:12 am

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